What if you died every day?

[JSWolf]

Originally Posted by steven522

Wait. He dies every day and comes back to life the next day. Not a reliving of the same day over and over? Wouldn't everyone else around him go, "Hey! Aren't you supposed to be dead?!??"

That's a very good point.

[kennyc]

Originally Posted by tipplej

Pile away kenny!
... I must ask two questions:

1.
If its all been done before, then without reading the book, can anyone speculate as to why Ewan Charles dies every single day in the Dead Loop?

2.
Can anyone name a single book published in 2012 for which we also collectively are unable to say just as easily: "Been there, done that, got the t-shirt?"

1. Nope can't do it, but that really doesn't matter.

2. Yep. Faith by John Love, any number of others.....50 shades..oh wait,no been there done that too.


In any case, most plots and stories have been done before. Just based on the description of this, it is as I said and does not really appeal to me for that reason. Certainly I could be wrong, or jaded, or ignorant, but ...

[DiapDealer]

Wouldn't everyone else around him go, "Hey! Aren't you supposed to be dead?!??"

Like Snake Plissken?

[tipplej]

Originally Posted by JSWolf

That's a very good point.

It is a very good point and I can't really answer it here in case anyone reads the book! But it does make sense I promise!

Essentially in chapter 1 Ewan dies in the abandonded city of Pripyat, shortly after falling from a roof and immediately "awakens" if you can call it that, at the start of chapter 2 half way through an interview in London, wondering what the hell just happened.


Lets hear from some of Ewan's own words in the Prologue:

‘Death aims only once, but never misses.’ – Edward Counsel.
There was a time when I believed that those philosophical words were true. Not anymore though, because now I know differently...

Edward Counsel was wrong, death doesn’t only aim once and never miss because I die every single day. The famous Roman philosopher Seneca put things better when he said: ‘It is uncertain where death may await thee, therefore expect it everywhere.’
When you die as often as I do, those words seem to make a lot of sense.

I can remember my first death clearly. It was some time ago in the Ukraine and long before I knew of Seneca’s words, so back then - I never expected it.

[Namekuseijin]

Originally Posted by tipplej

Also the explanation to Groundhog was poor, he just sort of fell in love and it stopped happening to him, which always felt a bit weak to me. Unless I misundersood the end!

he didn't fell in love, over the course of his curse he became a better man until the loop just stopped feeling like a curse. Love GHD. Besides being spot on in everything it attempted, it's also a great example of a very economic and minimalist movie.

Anyway, who doesn't love misterious loop paradoxes? Your premise sounds intriguing enough, heads up.

[Namekuseijin]

Originally Posted by DiapDealer

Like Snake Plissken?

Snake, snaaaaaaaaake!

[tipplej]

Originally Posted by kennyc

1. Nope can't do it, but that really doesn't matter.

2. Yep. Faith by John Love, any number of others.....50 shades..oh wait,no been there done that too.


In any case, most plots and stories have been done before. Just based on the description of this, it is as I said and does not really appeal to me for that reason. Certainly I could be wrong, or jaded, or ignorant, but ...

Hi kenny,

Faith by John Love is a science fiction novel about a seemingly invincible alien ship attacking future humans. At face value this does not sound at all original. Looking deeper, I can see from reviews that the author has tried to do something different with the genre which is always nice to see.

It does however prove my point exactly. The strap line is "debut novel of Space Opera and Military Science Fiction." I could easily say "seen it all before and got the T shirt," without making the effort to explore further.

I think we are all wrong to make assumptions that a book is not original and dismiss them so easily as being "just like something else," whilst only glancing at a brief synopsis.

I am sure if you have read "Faith" that you are correct in that it has original elements and I'm confident that the Dead Loop too is very unique.

Everyone should read what appeals to them I agree and Faith sounds quite interesting, so i might add that to my download list. Im not a Sci-Fi avid reader but I have explored the genre before.

I think personal preference is key. The many Mills and Boon readers are not interested in originality although I like to write and read things that are a little different and unpredictable.

[tipplej]

Originally Posted by DiapDealer

Like Snake Plissken?

Lee Van Cleef - what a legend!

"You have 24 hours to bring back the the President"
"What if I'm a little late?"
"Then there'll be no more Snake Plisken!"

[twowheels]

I may read the sample to get a better idea, but haven't had a chance yet.

That said, here's my honest feedback so far:

- The web page doesn't appeal to me. Reminds me of when we first started hand coding pages prior to the general public finding their way onto the Internet. The clock and visit counter add to that impression, and I wouldn't be surprised to encounter an animated "under construction" gif somewhere.

- I find your writing style on the forum somewhat difficult to read. I agree that one takes a different approach to writing long form and on forums, but IME, good communicators [a group to which I do not claim to belong] are good at both formats. I see simple errors repeated that indicate a lack of attention to detail [e.g. its vs. it's]. Yes, a good editor can help with that, but I imagine a certain minimal starting point.

- The cover art has the same early 90s and amateur feel as the website.

Admittedly, none of these have anything to do with the quality of the story. I do personally find the premise to be interesting, even if similar things have been done before. It's a topic that seems to have a lot of potential for exploration, with a lot of variation in reactions and exploration of the moral implications of those reactions. For those reasons, I might consider reading it if I find myself wanting a change of pace from my usual reading.

[tipplej]

Originally Posted by Namekuseijin

Love GHD. Besides being spot on in everything it attempted, it's also a great example of a very economic and minimalist movie.

Anyway, who doesn't love misterious loop paradoxes? Your premise sounds intriguing enough, heads up.

I love Groundhog Day too. Always been a fan of Bill Murray, right back to "Ghostbusters" and "Stripes". You're right - paradoxes can be fun, although some of the time-travel loops and paradoxes in modern TV or sci fi can be hard to grasp the logic!

Thanks!
I'm glad you like the premise of my book because that was how the Dead Loop began, with a simple idea:.

"What would happen if a guy died every single day in a different way and immediately after his death "awakened / appeared" on a new day, maybe somewhere else, maybe halfway through the day?"

From this, I began to explore and develop ideas on what would he would do, what was happening to him, how it would affect his relationships and why.

The book is written first person from Ewan's perspective and I strived tirelessly to make it intriguing, exciting, emotive and above all easy to read, (all things I look for myself as a reader). The story might not be to everyones taste but it's taken me through a range of emotions reading and editing it. I now seem to know and see the characers as real people, although I had pictures of these "strangers" initially on my wall for many many months!

If there is a way to do it on Amazon I would give anyone who didnt engage with and enjoy the Dead Loop a full refund. I think that should be standard policy for authors! I'll probably release part 1 for free every 18 days or so, as Amazon allow this.

Thanks for commenting.

[tipplej]

Originally Posted by twowheels

It's a topic that seems to have a lot of potential for exploration, with a lot of variation in reactions and exploration of the moral implications of those reactions. For those reasons, I might consider reading it if I find myself wanting a change of pace from my usual reading.

Thanks for the feedback twowheels.
I've never felt the need to polish fourm posts to the same extent as my books, but perhaps I should start doing so!

I hope you do find time to check out the Dead Loop as I would welcome your thoughts most kindly.
I'll probably run the first part for free again soon to encourage more feedback.

It's interesting that you mention pace because I focused hard on the Dead Loop being fairly quick paced and easy to read. I am always turned off by books that I have to concentrate too hard to read or feel I am 'forcing' the reading. In my own writing, I believe the reader should find the book flows easily.

What is your normal pace / genre of book you read?

Thanks again for commenting.

[greenyouth]

Originally Posted by tipplej

The DEAD LOOP

Hello fellow writers and readers!

In the DEAD LOOP trilogy, Ewan Charles experiences his own death every day. It's an intense psycological thriller mystery. Is that a new genre I wonder? !!!

I was hoping to share with you my video trailer for the Dead Loop. Its the first time I have ever made a home video. I thought a breif video showing off ones book was an unusual and under-used idea. I would very much appreciate some feedback on how effective my video is in generating intrigue in the book.

Any suggestions would me much appreciated!

This is very interesting. Thanks for sharing

[greenyouth]

Originally Posted by JSWolf

That's a very good point.

Kinda annoying but I am sure pretty interesting. How can he die everyday? That's the purpose of the writer to make as curious and read the book.

[twowheels]

Originally Posted by tipplej

What is your normal pace / genre of book you read?

Good question, not even sure I can answer it. :-)

I read a lot of older science fiction (not sure why, but modern science fiction always turns me off -- without the quaint anachronisms, it just doesn't feel right :-) )...

I read a lot of non fiction related to my career...

I read a lot of the books that I was "supposed to read" when I was younger, but never did. :-)

[tipplej]

Originally Posted by greenyouth

Kinda annoying but I am sure pretty interesting. How can he die everyday? That's the purpose of the writer to make as curious and read the book.

Thanks greenyouth.


Ewan Charles very much can and does die every day!

My objective in this excellent forum was to evoke interest in the Dead Loop, so I'm pleased it's working to some extent.

I hope of course that the story sells itself with the basic premise of him dying every day.

As I mentioned earlier the numerous test readers I used helped me to fine tune the intrigue and hopefully drive the reader to wonder what is happening and why. Hopefully other readers will also care about Ewan Charles, his family and his situation whilst developing genuine emotions for the other characters. They are all real people to me now and I can picture them all...

If the basic premise and genre appeals to a potential reader then I sincerely hope and believe they will never be disappointed with my easy writing style, how the story develops or the emotions and situations invloved.


Honest feedback on the Dead Loop from new readers will be the only true test of that though!
It doesn't really matter what I think of it or how well I sell it, all that matters to me is what the readers think. Only readers can truly judge a book and their word or consensus of opinion is the only true test!

I hope most people love the book and will never regret experiencing the Dead Loop. Time will tell!

best wishes and thanks very much for commenting